GMAT Math : Triangles

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GMAT Math

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Example Questions

Example Question #277 : Geometry

Calculate the area of the following right triangle, leave in terms of

7

 

(Not drawn to scale.)

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The equation for the area of a right triangle is:

 

In this case, our values are: 

Plugging this into the equation leaves us with:

which can be rewritten as 

Example Question #4 : Calculating The Area Of A Right Triangle

A right triangle has a hypotenuse of 13 and a base of 12. Calculate the area of the triangle.

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

In order to calculate the area of a right triangle, we need to know the height and the base. We are only given the length of the base, so we first need to use the Pythagorean theorem with the given hypotenuse to find the length of the height:

Now that we have the height and the base, we can plug these values into the formula for the area of a right triangle:

Example Question #31 : Triangles

Find the area of a triangle whose base is  and height is .

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

To find the area, use the following formula:

Example Question #32 : Triangles

A right triangle has a height of    and a base of  .  In order for another triangle to be congruent, what must be the length of its hypotenuse?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

In order for two triangles to be congruent, they must be identical. That is, the lengths of the corresponding sides of two congruent triangles must be equal. This means that in order for a triangle to be congruent to one with a height of    and a base of  ,  its hypotenuse must be the same length as the hypotenuse of that triangle, which we can find using the Pythagorean Theorem:

Example Question #33 : Triangles

A given right triangle has a base of  and a height of . What must the base length of a congruent right triangle be?

Possible Answers:

None of the above.

Correct answer:

Explanation:

In order for two right triangles to be congruent, the bases and heights must have identical lengths. Since we have a given right triangle with a base of , the congruent right triangle must also have a base of  .

Example Question #3 : Calculating Whether Right Triangles Are Congruent

A given right triangle has a height of  and an acute angle of . What must the acute angle of a congruent right triangle be?

Possible Answers:

None of the above.

Correct answer:

Explanation:

In order for two right triangles to be congruent, the hypotenuses and acute angles must be identical. Since we have a given right triangle with an acute angle of , the congruent right triangle must also have an acute angle of  .

Example Question #4 : Calculating Whether Right Triangles Are Congruent

A given right triangle has a base of  and a height of . What must the base length of a congruent right triangle be?

Possible Answers:

None of the above.

Correct answer:

Explanation:

In order for two right triangles to be congruent, the bases and heights must have identical lengths. Since we have a given right triangle with a base of , the congruent right triangle must also have a base of  .

Example Question #1 : Calculating The Height Of A Right Triangle

Right_triangle

Note: Figure NOT drawn to scale

Refer to the above diagram. 

Calculate 

Possible Answers:

Insufficient information is given to calculate .

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The hypotenuse of the large right triangle is 

The area of the large right triangle is half the product of its base and its height. The base can be any side of the triangle; the height would be the length of the altitude, which is the perpendicular segment from the opposite vertex to that base.

Therefore, the area of the triangle can be calculated as half the product of the legs:

Or half the product of the hypotenuse and the length  of the dashed line.

To calculate , we can set these expressions equal to each other:

Example Question #2 : Calculating The Height Of A Right Triangle

A right triangle has a base of 8 and an area of 24. What is the height of the triangle?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Using the formula for the area of a right triangle, we can plug in the given values and solve for the height of the triangle:

Example Question #1 : Calculating The Height Of A Right Triangle

Export-png

Triangle  is a right triangle with . What is the length of its height

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The height AE, divides the triangle ABC, in two triangles AEC and AEB with same proportions as the original triangle ABC, this property holds true for any right triangle.

In other words, .

Therefore, we can calculate, the length of AE: 

.

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